Monique M. Jethwani-Keyser

Dr. Jethwani is a developmental psychologist who specializes in educational reform. She analyzes the factors that will make students of all backgrounds feel welcome in school.

Monique Jethwani joined the full-time faculty at the Columbia School of Social Work in 2012. She previously served as a postdoctoral research scientist at CSSW’s Center for Research on Fathers, Children, and Family Well-Being and is now the director of faculty development.

Dr. Jethwani has experience in developmental research, program development and evaluation, and direct services for youth. For several years she was director of the Safe Harbor program at Safe Horizon, where she managed the local operation (five sites) and national replication (ten sites) of a comprehensive school-based violence prevention program. She has also provided consulting services that include training, curriculum development, and program planning and evaluation for organizations such as The Children’s Aid Society, The After-School Corporation, Educators for Social Responsibility, Forestdale Inc., and the Partnership for After-School Education.

Dr. Jethwani has also worked with schools and youth organizations in India, Bermuda, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, where she conducted quantitative and qualitative research and evaluation studies, consequently identifying best practices. Her mixed-methods doctoral dissertation from New York University, entitled When Teachers Treat Me Well, I Think I Belong: School Belonging and the Psychological and Academic Well-Being of Adolescent Girls in India, earned her the NYU Steinhardt award for outstanding research contribution. Her work in Bermuda focused on the lives of unemployed young Black Bermudian men and the gender gap in educational attainment. It resulted in educational policy recommendations made directly to the Bermudian premier and was featured on the front page of The Bermuda Royal Gazette.

Most recently, Dr. Jethwani has partnered with the NYU Tandon School of Engineering to evaluate several projects funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Security Agency. These projects aim to engage middle school, high school, and college students and their teachers in robotics and cybersecurity activities. Findings have identified strategies to better engage female and minority students in STEM-related activities and careers.

Dr. Jethwani holds a BA from Barnard College, an EdM from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, and a PhD from the New York University School of Culture, Education, and Human Development.